British Ministry of Magic
The Ministry of Magic (M.o.M.) of the United Kingdom is the main governing body of the magical community of Great Britain with the intention of preservation of magical law. The Ministry connects the British government to the wizarding world. The headquarters of the Ministry are in Whitehall,"Challenge mode tests wizarding skills" at the [http://harrypotter.ea.com/UK/? Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1 (video game) official site] in central London, deep underground.Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, Ch. 7 It is headed by the Minister for Magic. The Ministry of Magic was formed as a successor to the earlier Wizards' Council and came into being sometime during the 1600s. It was involved in the International Confederation of Wizards' decision to create the Statute of Secrecy and still today takes the responsibility of enforcing said Statute. The laws against magic-use by underage wizards and against wand use by non-wizard folk are also enforced by the Ministry, in part to maintain secrecy. The magical government sometimes has given the impression of, at various times, either incompetence or malice, which are demonstrated by successful break-outs from Azkaban and the Campaign to Discredit Albus Dumbledore and Harry Potter, respectively. The Ministry has been known to be corrupt in nature, as it is shown to be quite prepared to decree and enforce draconian laws without notice, and seem uninterested in solving serious problems, choosing instead to ignore or cover up bad news. The current Minister in Britain is Kingsley Shacklebolt. It is known that other countries have their own Ministries of Magic, such as Norway, Germany, Bulgaria etc.Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, in chapter 5 History Early years The Ministry of Magic succeeded the earlier Wizards' Council. It was founded in or prior to 1629.Balfour Blane's Chocolate Frog Card In 1717, The Ministry classified the Imperius, Cruciatus & Avada Kedavra curses as unforgivable. Shortly before Millicent Bagnold's retirement, many of the wizarding population wanted Albus Dumbledore to become Minister. He was offered the job four times,Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, Ch. 20 but turned it down, because of his previous negative experiences with power. The most likely person to become Minister from that point on was Bartemius Crouch Sr., who had gained popularity from his purges of Death Eaters after the first fall of Lord Voldemort, including arresting his own son for participating in the Cruciatus Curse torture of Alice and Frank Longbottom.Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, Ch. 27 However, he fell out of favour, when people suspected that his son's actions and death in Azkaban were the result of Crouch not caring for his son. Under Cornelius Fudge , Minister for Magic]] During the events surrounding Lord Voldemort's second rise to power, Cornelius Fudge, a highly corruptible, easily intimidated man, was Minister for Magic. He became Minister for Magic in 1990.Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix - Chapter 10 (Luna Lovegood) His inadequacies were not worried throughout his administration as he usually accepted advice from more able people, such as Albus Dumbledore. 1992-1993 When Dobby does magic to attempt to keep Harry away from Hogwarts, a letter of reprimand, signed by one Mafalda Hopkirk, is sent by Owl Post from the Ministry. In addition, Fudge came to Hogwarts to put Hagrid in Azkaban, as the half-giant was suspected of being the one who opened the Chamber of Secrets. 1993-1994 During these years, the Ministry tried very hard to recapture Sirius Black, an Azkaban escapee; there is evidence to suggest that the Ministry seemed more interested in retaining its reputation than in acting correctly. Fudge's refusal to even listen to Harry and Hermione's side of the story, while accepting Severus Snape's version of events unquestioned, shows that Fudge, at least, was a very political person, doing what he felt would give him the greatest degree of popularity. 1994-1995 During these years, the international Triwizard Tournament concluded with the death of Cedric Diggory and the Rebirth of Lord Voldemort on 24 June, 1995. The Ministry's immediate responses were to spin the former and deny the latter, out of fear of being pilloried by public opinion. Percy Weasley, given a promotion to assist Fudge directly as part of the apparent cover-up of the Ministry's failure to protect its own employee, Bartemius Crouch Sr., accepted the Ministry story at face value, while Arthur Weasley, while remaining a Ministry employee, found Dumbledore more believable. This difference of opinion caused an estrangement between Percy and the rest of his family. 1995-1996 After Voldemort's return, the Ministry campaigned to discredit Albus Dumbledore and Harry Potter, as Fudge, his mind "twisted and warped by fear", refused to believe this horrifying possibility. This trend of attempting to minimize the immediate damage included the Ministry's attempts to get Harry drummed out of the Wizarding community, forcing teachers and oversight on Hogwarts, removing privileges from Albus Dumbledore and anyone who accepted his statement that Voldemort has returned, and encouraging the Daily Prophet to publish stories denigrating Dumbledore and Harry. On 12 August, Harry Potter was summoned to a disciplinary hearing at the Ministry, pertaining to what the Ministry termed "offences committed under the Decree for the Reasonable Restriction of Underage Sorcery and the International Statute of Secrecy". The hearing was changed to a full court trial, which was unorthodox and was outside the context of the law, in a biased attempt to further discredit Harry.Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix - Chapter 8 (The Hearing) Ministry activities ended up having to include concealing the reason for the mass breakout from Azkaban, as the Ministry could not explain, or justify, the defection of the Dementors. Lord Voldemort and his Death Eaters tried to retrieve a a specific prophecy pertaining to Harry Potter and Lord Voldemort from the Hall of Prophecy on Level Nine, the Department of Mysteries. In order to do that, they placed both Broderick BodeHarry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix - Chapter 26 (Seen and Unforeseen) and Sturgis PodmoreHarry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix - Chapter 14 (Percy and Padfoot) under the Imperius Curse, to no avail, as only Harry could take it from its shelf. Shortly after midnight on 18 June, 1996, the Death Eaters managed to lure Harry Potter and Dumbledore's Army into the deserted Ministry. The Order of the Phoenix went to rescue them, and a battle ensued which included a duel between Voldemort and Dumbledore themselves in the Atrium of the Ministry.Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix - Chapter 35 (Beyond the Veil) After the battle, Fudge and several other witnesses saw Voldemort with their own eyes, and this position of denial became untenable. Thus, the Ministry was forced to acknowledge the return of the Dark Lord and, and Fudge was replaced by Rufus Scrimgeour shortly after he left the office in disgrace.Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince - Chapter 1 (The Other Minister) , former Head of the Auror Office and Minister for Magic.]] s during Scrimgeour's time as Minister.]] Under Rufus Scrimgeour In response to the war situation the country was facing, Rufus Scrimgeour, the previous Head of the Auror Office, was appointed Fudge's successor in the summer of 1996, and was responsible for the creation of several new bureaucracy, such as Office for the Detection and Confiscation of Counterfeit Defensive Spells and Protective Objects.Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince - Chapter 5 (An Excess of Phlegm) Despite this, unfortunately, Scrimgeour did not fare much better than Fudge. Again reacting to public opinion, Scrimgeour tried desperately to make the Ministry look like it was making progress, despite the reality being to the contrary, such as by wrongfully imprisoning Stan Shunpike. Harry had two meetings with Scrimgeour, in which Harry's co-operation with the Ministry was solicited for his propaganda value: the Ministry wanted Harry to be the "poster child" for the Ministry so as to give the public hope, by telling them that the Ministry remained a source of safety and strength. Harry turned Scrimgeour down flat both times. In the summer of the next year, shortly after Albus Dumbledore's murder, the Atrium at the Ministry was the setting for a speech by Scrimgeour about the "dark times" in which the wizarding world was living, and how the Ministry remained "strong" and active in the fight against the dark forces.Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1 - Chapter 1 In the meantime, the Death Eaters were managing to infiltrate the Ministry by magically controlling some of the its higher-ranking officials.Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows - Chapter 1 (The Dark Lord Ascending) As a consequence, later in the summer, on the evening of 1 August, 1997, the Ministry was the stage of a silent coup, during which Scrimgeour was murdered''Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows'' - Chapter 8 (The Wedding) while refusing to give the Death Eaters any information on Harry Potter.Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows - Chapter 11 (The Bribe) Under Pius Thicknesse (investigator of alleged Muggle-borns), Dolores Umbridge (Head of the Muggle-Born Registration Commission), Pius Thicknesse (Minister for Magic), and Yaxley (Head of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement)]] After the Death Eater coup, the Ministry of Magic was headed by Pius Thicknesse, who was under Death Eater control by means of the Imperius Curse; Voldemort chose not to openly reveal himself as Minister, in order to keep an atmosphere of fear and uncertainty within the community. Much more security was added to the building. In addition, employees were now forced to go to work via a toilet network,Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows - Chapter 12 (Magic Is Might) accessible inside a set of underground public toilets in Whitehall.Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows - Chapter 12 (Magic Is Might) Under Thicknesse's control, the Ministry became totalitarian, placing surveillance upon those it was suspicious of, such as Arthur Weasley, and creating the Muggle-Born Registration Commission to prosecute Muggle-borns for allegedly stealing magic. The Ministry also acquired the motto 'Magic is Might' which was inscribed upon a sculpture with a witch and wizard sitting on thrones made of Muggles.Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows - Chapter 13 (The Muggle-born Registration Commission) Death Eaters such as Yaxley gained high positions within the Ministry as well. Recent Years ]] In 1998, after the destruction of Lord Voldemort and the end of the Second Wizarding War, Kingsley Shacklebolt became Minister for Magic and led a massive reform of the Ministry"J.K. Rowling Web Chat Transcript" on The Leaky Cauldron. This included the efforts of Harry Potter and Ron Weasley in the Auror Office, and Hermione Granger advancing the rights of non-humans, and eradicating pro-pure-blood laws in the Department for the Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures and later the Department of Magical Law Enforcement. "Vieira, Meredith. "Harry Potter: The Final Chapter" Dateline (NBC) , 29 July 2007" on Accio Quote Composition and status Connection to non-magical world Each new Muggle Prime Minister receives a visit from the Minister for Magic, who informs him or her that the wizarding world exists. He explains that he will contact the Prime Minister only in circumstances in which the events of the wizard world may affect Muggles. For example, the Minister has to inform the Prime Minister if dangerous magical artefacts or animals are to be brought into the U.K. The Ministry keeps in touch with the British Prime Minister via a wizard's portrait in the Prime Minister's office at 10 Downing Street. The portrait, which cannot be removed from the wall (because of a Permanent Sticking Charm in place), notifies the Prime Minister of the Minister for Magic's arrival. The Ministers for Magic Cornelius Fudge and Rufus Scrimgeour tend to act in a somewhat patronising manner towards the Muggle Prime Minister. Government structure and Employment The Ministry's employees appear to be a largely unelected body, but the post of Minister itself is stated to be an elected position.Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, Ch. 7 Who has the power to elect or dismiss ministers is never explained. Nevertheless, both the Minister and the Ministry as a whole are seen to be highly sensitive to (and reliant on) wizard public opinion, which they attempt to influence via the Daily Prophet, the wizarding newspaper,Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, Ch. 7 while Fudge resigned in disgrace when the entire community demanded for it due to his inactivity led to Voldemort's second rise. Employment with the Ministry can be obtained directly upon completion of a wizarding education,Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire though different offices require different levels of education and sometimes specific exam results. Ministers for Magic (to complete) The following is a list of known Ministers for Magic and their tenures in office: *Eldritch Diggory (?—?) *Lorcan McLaird (?—?) *Dugald McPhail (?—?) *Unctuous Osbert (late 1700s) *Artemisia Lufkin (1798—1811) *Grogan Stump (1811—1819) *Evangeline Orpington (1849—1855) *Faris Spavin (1865—1903) *Ottaline Gambol (c. 1936) *Nobby Leach (1962—1968) *Millicent Bagnold (1980—1990) *Cornelius Fudge (1990—1 July, 1996) *Rufus Scrimgeour (1 July, 1996—1 August, 1997) *Pius Thicknesse (1 August, 1997—2 May, 1998) *Kingsley Shacklebolt (2 May, 1998—?) The current Minister, Kingsley Shacklebolt, replaced Voldemort's puppet, Pius Thicknesse, who had been placed under the Imperius Curse and put in power after Voldemort killed Scrimgeour, who had replaced Fudge. Albus Dumbledore was offered the job of Minister and refused it at least four times. In his latter days at Hogwarts, Tom Riddle was widely predicted to become Minister due to his intelligence, magical talent, and ability to forge alliances with the people around him, and to gather followers to serve his interests. Riddle, however, refused all offers of assistance to find work at the Ministry. Important Personnel Note that the following list does not include Ministers for Magic, as that list is in the above section. *Ludovic Bagman - Head of Department of Magical Games and Sports (vanished?) *Amelia Bones (deceased) - Head of Department of Magical Law Enforcement, murdered by Voldemort *Broderick Bode (deceased while on medical leave) - "Unspeakable," Department of Mysteries *Dirk Cresswell (deceased) - Head of Goblin Liaison Office *Croaker - "Unspeakable," Department of Mysteries *Bartemius Crouch, Sr. (deceased) - Head of Department of International Magical Cooperation *John Dawlish - Auror *Amos Diggory - Department for the Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures *Madam Edgecombe - Floo Network Office *Mafalda Hopkirk - Improper Use of Magic Office *Alice Longbottom (permanent medical leave) - Auror *Frank Longbottom (permanent medical leave) - Auror *Walden Macnair - Committee for the Disposal of Dangerous Creatures *Cuthbert Mockridge - Head of the Goblin Liaison Office *Bertha Jorkins (deceased) - Department of Magical Games and Sports *Alastor "Mad-Eye" Moody (retired, deceased) - Auror *Eric Munch - watchwizard *Bob Ogden (deceased) - Member of the Magical Law Enforcement Office *Arnold Peasegood - Obliviator *Perkins - Arthur Weasley's co-worker in the Misuse of Muggle Artefacts Office *Proudfoot - Auror, one of the guardians of Hogwarts *Gawain Robards - Head of the Aurors (after Rufus Scrimgeour) *Savage - Auror, one of the guardians of Hogwarts *Newt Scamander - Beast Division, Department for the Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures, retired, and author of Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them *Nymphadora Tonks (deceased) - Auror *Dolores Umbridge - Senior Undersecretary to the Minister for Magic under Cornelius Fudge *Arthur Weasley - head of the Misuse of Muggle Artefacts Office under Cornelius Fudge and head of the Office for the Detection and Confiscation of Counterfeit Defensive Spells and Protective Objects under Rufus Scrimgeour *Percy Weasley - Department of International Magical Cooperation, promoted to Junior Assistant to the Minister for Magic under Cornelius Fudge, retained that position under Rufus Scrimgeour and Pius Thicknesse *Gilbert Wimple - On the Committee on Experimental Charms Entering the Ministry One may enter the Ministry via the visitors' entrance, which is in a outside on the pavement. The entrance code on the telephone booth is the number 62442 ("MAGIC"). Following the prompts of the operator, passes are issued and the telephone box will descend through the ground into the Atrium (Floor 8). It was presumed that, before Voldemort's takeover, a Ministry wizard would either use the Floo Network or Apparate directly into the attrium. More than twenty service lifts stop at all floors, levels 1-9. Stairways may provide access to all 10 levels in the Ministry and must be used to access the Wizengamot courtrooms on level 10. As the entire Ministry is underground, the higher floor number indicates levels deeper into the ground. During Voldemort's reign After Voldemort took over the Ministry, employees and officials were forced to enter the Ministry by flushing themselves through underground toilets in Whitehall. Two stairways are labelled GENTLEMEN or LADIES. They lead into an underground public bathroom. A golden Ministry of Magic coin is used to open the stall doors. The act of flushing oneself down the Ministry toilet causes the person to emerge into a fireplace on the left side of the Atrium, which faces the Magic is Might monument, a replacement of the Fountain of Magical Brethren. To depart the Ministry, one must stand in one of the fireplaces on the right side of the Atrium, causing them to come out of another toilet in the underground bathroom. At this point one may Apparate to a separate location. Departments The Ministry has seven departments in all, each dealing with different aspects of the wizarding world, with the Department of Magical Law Enforcement being the largest and all others more or less answering to it (except the Department of Mysteries). Each Department has a level of Ministry Headquarters assigned to it, although Law Enforcement has not only level two but also the courtrooms of level ten. There are also many minor offices within the departments. The known departments and their offices are the following: *Minister for Magic and Support Staff **Office of the Minister for Magic **Office of the Advisor to the Minister for Magic **Office of the Senior Undersecretary to the Minister for Magic **Office of the Junior Assistant to the Minister for Magic *Department of Magical Law Enforcement **Auror Office **Misuse of Muggle Artefacts Office **Office for the Detection and Confiscation of Counterfeit Defensive Spells and Protective Objects **Improper Use of Magic Office **Wizengamot Administration Services *Department of Magical Accidents and Catastrophes **Accidental Magic Reversal Squad **Obliviator Headquarters **Muggle-Worthy Excuse Committee **Invisibility Task Force **Muggle Liaison Office *Department for the Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures **Beast Division **Being Division **Spirit Division **Goblin Liaison Office **Centaur Liaison Office **Pest Advisory Board **Office of Misinformation *Department of International Magical Cooperation **International Magical Trading Standards Body **International Magical Office of Law **International Confederation of Wizards *Department of Magical Transportation **Floo Network Authority **Broom Regulatory Control **Portkey Office **Apparation Test Centre *Department of Magical Games and Sports **British and Irish Quidditch League Headquarters **Official Gobstones Club **Ludicrous Patents Office *Department of Mysteries *Departments of Unknown Levels **Committee on Experimental Charms **Magical Maintenance Department **Ministry of Magic Public Information Services **Department of Magical Education **Very Important Members of Section M.I. Trx. **Wizarding Examinations Authority **Ministry of Magic research committee **Ministry of Magic exploding bonbons disposal unit **Foreign Affairs and Sports Department The departments communicate through "interdepartmental memos", written on pale-violet paper which is folded into paper aeroplanes, which fly on their own to destinations. They once used owls, which caused intolerable amounts of fouling by their droppings and moulted feathers. Minister for Magic and Support Staff on Level One.]] This department has the offices of the highest Ministry officials. This level's floor is covered in thick purple carpets, and all the offices within contain a gleaming mahogany door, each bearing a small plaque with the owner's name and position upon it.Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows - Chapter 13 (The Muggle-Born Registration Commission) During the puppet regime set up by Lord Voldemort in 1997-1998, this level also housed the office of the Head of the Muggle-Born Registration Commission. It includes these known offices: *Office of the Minister for Magic *Office of the Advisor to the Minister for Magic *Office of the Senior Undersecretary to the Minister for Magic *Office of the Junior Assistant to the Minister for Magic Department of Magical Law Enforcement The Department of Magical Law Enforcement is the largest department at the Ministry of Magic, although the size of the Department of Mysteries is unknown. Arguably the most important of the various departments, the Department of Magical Law Enforcement is a combination of police and justice facilities and is roughly the equivalent to the Home Office of Muggle Britain. It is located on the second level of the Ministry of Magic. Around the corner from the access lift, and past a set of heavy oak doors, lies the Auror Headquarters: a large open area divided into small cubicles, one for each Auror. After another set of double doors and another passage, one finds oneself in a dimly lit and distinctly shabby corridor at the end of which lies a broom cupboard to the left and opposite it the Misuse of Muggle Artefacts Office, in a room of almost the same size as the cupboard; two desks and overflowing filing cabinets crammed inside. Before Voldemort's take-over, this Department was headed by Amelia Bones. She was replaced by Pius Thicknesse after Voldemort murdered herHarry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, and Thicknesse was replaced by [[Yaxley after Voldemort had Thicknesse appointed the puppet Minister for his regime. Bartemius Crouch Sr. once headed the department. Harry joined this department, under the Auror Office, at the age of seventeen and was followed by Ron Weasley. It includes the following known offices: *Auror Office *Misuse of Muggle Artefacts Office *Office for the Detection and Confiscation of Counterfeit Defensive Spells and Protective Objects *Improper Use of Magic Office *Wizengamot and Wizengamot Administration Services Department of Magical Accidents and Catastrophes The Department of Magical Accidents and Catastrophes is responsible for repairing accidental magical damage. It includes these known departments: *Accidental Magic Reversal Squad *Obliviator Headquarters *Muggle-Worthy Excuse Committee *Invisibility Task Force *Muggle Liaison Office Department for the Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures The Department for the Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures is the second largest Department in the Ministry. After leaving Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, Hermione Granger briefly worked in this department, before transferring to the Department of Magical Law Enforcement. It includes these known departments: *Beast Division *Being Division *Spirit Division *Goblin Liaison Office *Centaur Liaison Office *Pest Advisory Board *Office of Misinformation Department of International Magical Cooperation The Department of International Magical Cooperation is an agency concerned in foreign affairs that attempts to get wizards from different countries to cooperate in wizarding actions, both political and public. The former head was Bartemius Crouch Sr., until his death. This is also where Percy Weasley began his Ministry career. It is closest to the British Foreign & Commonwealth Office in the Muggle World, and various organs of the United Nations, though seems to hold less prowess in the Wizarding world, apparently. The duties of this department are to work with magical governments of other countries, set standards for trade, create regulations for things like cauldron thickness, work with Department of Magical Games and Sports on the Triwizard Tournament, be present at the International Confederation of Wizards, British Seats. It includes these known departments: *International Magical Trading Standards Body *International Magical Office of Law *International Confederation of Wizards, British Seats Department of Magical Transportation The Department of Magical Transportation is responsible for various aspects of magical transport. It includes these known departments: *Floo Network Authority *Broom Regulatory Control *Portkey Office *Apparation Test Centre Department of Magical Games and Sports The Department of Magical Games and Sports deals with organising sports events, the likes of the Quidditch World Cup and the Triwizard Tournament, as well as enforcing game-related laws and regulations. The Department has a very relaxed ambience, the corridor off the access lift being somewhat "untidy-looking" in comparison to the other Ministerial Departments: various posters of Quidditch teams tacked lopsidedly on the walls. Ludovic Bagman used to be the Head of Department here, but his gambling problem forced him to flee from Goblin creditors. It includes these known departments: *British and Irish Quidditch League Headquarters *Official Gobstones Club *Ludicrous Patents Office The Atrium ]] The Atrium is an area that serves as a lobby and reception area to welcome visitors and employees to the Ministry of Magic. The Atrium is a very long hall with a highly polished dark wood floor. The ceiling is peacock blue and is filled with golden symbols that keep moving like a notice board. The walls on each side are covered in gilded fireplaces: the left-hand side ones serving for arrivals and the right-hand side ones for departures. Halfway down the Atrium lays a statue: from 1995-1996 it was the Fountain of Magical Brethren and from 1997-1998 under Lord Voldemort it was the Magic is Might monument. There is also a set of double golden gates leading to the at least twenty access lifts. *Lobby and Reception Area *Fountain of Magical Brethren/Magic is Might monument *Security Desk *Ministry Munchies Café *Lifts *Magical Maintenance Department of Mysteries .]] The Department of Mysteries, located on Level Nine, is a section of the Ministry of Magic that carries out confidential research involving particular enigmas (death, time, space, thought, and love) and stores copies of prophecies. Most of its operations are carried out in total secrecy from the general wizard populace''Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix'' - Chapter 35 (Beyond the Veil). However, the primary operations of the department seem to be more like those of scientists, the department attempting to uncover the sources and rules that govern magic. Few wizards within the Ministry actually know what is located within this department. Those wizards who work in the Department of Mysteries are known as Unspeakables, because of the covert nature of their work. The also rarely talk, even to their co-workers.Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire During Voldemort's discriminatory regime, he forced the department to lie and claim that Muggle-borns actually steal magic from Pure-bloods, making them "illegal magicals" and allowing their arrest. The reason as to how Muggle-borns (born from non-magical parents) acquire magic remains an embraced mystery in the books, and because the department finally "corroborated" Voldemort's lie, the world was forced to believe. This level bears a striking difference to those above: the black-tiled walls''Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (film)'' - Chapter 26 (The Department of Mysteries) are bare with no windows and no doors, apart from a plain black one at the end of the corridor that leads into the Department proper. Light is provided only by torches, which glow with a blue-white light.Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix - Chapter 34 (The Department of Mysteries) A small flight of steps to the left leads to Level Ten. Upon entering the Department, one finds oneself in a circular hall of dark marble floor, lit by candles emmiting a cool blue light. The hall holds several doors leading to at least the following chambers in which various mysteries of life are studied: *Brain Room *Space Chamber *Death Chamber *Time Room *Hall of Prophecy *Love Chamber (a.k.a. The Ever-Locked Room) courtrooms being used in the First Wizarding War.]] Wizengamot Courtrooms Level 10 is the courtrooms, many of which which are used by the Wizengamot, the Wizard High Court, and the Council of Magical Law to put witches and wizards on full-scale criminal trials (such as the Death Eater trials in 1981 during the First Wizarding War) in.Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire - Chapter 30 (The Pensieve) In 1995, when Cornelius Fudge changed a simple case of underage magic to a full court trial, Harry Potter's hearing location changed from Amelia Bones's office to Courtroom Ten. In 1997, the Muggle-Born Registration Commission also used these courtrooms during their questioning of Muggle-born wizards. .]] There is a hallway leading from the Department of Mysteries, which connects to a stairwell leading to the courtrooms. It can only be accessed by this stairway and not the lifts. The corridors to the stairway have rough stone walls and torches in brackets. The doors leading to the courtrooms proper are heavy and made of wood, with large iron bolts and keyholes. Courtroom Ten has walls made of dark stone, dimly lit by torches, with serried rows of benches, rising in levels all around the room, all positioned so that they had a clear view of a chair on the centre of the room, in which the person charged with a crime would be seated. There is a detention area below the courtrooms, in which convicted wizards are imprisoned while awaiting transportation to Azkaban Prison. It is also a dark-tiled area, with gilded gates closing the cells.Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1 (video game) Departments of Unknown Levels The following is a list of Departments within the Ministry of Magic where it is unknown on which level they reside: *Committee on Experimental Charms *Magical Maintenance Department *Ministry of Magic Public Information Services *Department of Magical Education *Very Important Members of Section M.I. Trx. *Wizarding Examinations Authority *Ministry of Magic research committee *Ministry of Magic exploding bonbons disposal unit *Foreign Affairs and Sports Department Public relations While being a wizard or witch has obvious advantages, the system of government is not one of them. The Ministry seems to be an unelected body, and appears largely . There appears to be little coherent separation of powers and the judicial system is heavily biased. Corruption The Ministry of Magic gives an appearance of, at various times, either confounding incompetence or malice. The Ministry has been seen to decree and enforce harsh and tyrannical laws without notice. The few rights that human wizards do have are denied to non-humans. Even people who have been later found to be innocent have been subjected to the horrors of Azkaban, and not all of the accused are given trials, as was the case with Sirius Black. Modern governments would ostensibly consider some of the actions of the Ministry to be cruel and inhumane. Under the direction of Minister Cornelius Fudge, trials were short and did not employ juries (instead, a Wizarding Council heard every case, regardless of what prior knowledge they had of this case), there was no possibility to appeal the verdict, and lawyers were not allowed. It is likely that conditions have improved with the new administration. During Hagrid's appeal case before the Committee for the Disposal of Dangerous Creatures, the executioner (Walden Macnair) was present with his axe before a verdict was even decided on, and mostly the Committee's decisions are influenced by Lucius Malfoy, who threatens and intimidates the members into doing his bidding. that used to hang in the atrium, assuring the public that all was well and thus denying the clear evidence of Voldemort's return]] After the return of Lord Voldemort, the minister at the time, Cornelius Fudge, refused to believe that the evil wizard was back despite mounting evidence, and the Ministry even mounted a campaign to damage Harry Potter's credibility, an effort fuelled in part by Fudge's on paranoid fear that Albus Dumbledore wanted his job. Eventually, the Ministry was forced to acknowledge the emergency and act. Fudge was removed from office for incompetence and replaced by Rufus Scrimgeour. Rufus became as bad as Crouch Sr, making scape goats locking the wrong people in Azkaban such as Stan Shunpike, to try and make it look like the Ministry was doing a good job. When he asked Harry to be a mascot so that the public would support them, Harry refused because he knew it was still corrupt. After the Fall of the Ministry of Magic, the entire Ministry was under Voldemort and doing his bidding under the puppet government headed by Pius Thicknesse. The various laws implemented in this regime included in the persecution and harassment of Muggle-borns and Muggles and propaganda suggesting the inferiority of Muggles and how they should be treated as sub-humans by wizards. However, after Lord Voldemort's fall and Kingsley Shacklebolt being appointed minister, Harry, Ron, and Hermione work for the Ministry and change it in ways to make it drastically less corrupt. Muggle relations The Ministry keeps in touch with the Muggle Prime Minister of the United Kingdom through the help of a portrait in the Downing Street office. The portrait is fixed to the wall with a Permanent Sticking Charm so no Muggles will be able to remove it, and the subject of the painting will notify the Prime Minister of Muggles of the Minister for Magic's impending arrivals. The British Crown, including the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and the Monarch, are in full knowledge of the Ministry. However, after the Fall of the Ministry of Magic into the hands of Lord Voldemort and Pius Thicknesse became minister as Voldemort's puppet, a new era of Wizard-Muggle relations was brought on that was more in line with Death Eater ideology. These actions included the instalment of the "Magic is Might" statue in the Ministry Atrium to replace the Fountain of Magical Brethren, which depicts a witch and wizard on top of a throne made from the bodies of crude-looking Muggles. While prejudiced depictions of Muggles were taught by professors Amycus and Alecto Carrow at Hogwarts School under its new headmaster, Severus Snape, the Ministry began claiming that Muggle-borns "stole" their magic from "real" witches and wizards. The Muggle-Born Registration Commission, headed by Dolores Umbridge, was set up to persecute and imprison Muggle-borns. Furthermore, the Snatchers organisation was formed in an attempt to round up any Muggle-borns or blood traitors on the run. People with known connections to the Order of the Phoenix or sympathies for Muggles, such as Arthur Weasley, were put under surveillance, and a reward for the capture of Harry Potter, known to the Ministry as "Undesirable No. 1", was offered. Presumably, after Voldemort's defeat and Kingsley Shacklebolt's installation of Minister for Magic, the cruel, prejudiced measures imposed under the Death Eater regime towards Muggles (such as the Muggle-Born Registration Commission) were abolished and the Ministry went on communicating with the Muggle Prime Minister when necessary. Appearances *''Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone'' *''Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone (film)'' *''Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets'' *''Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (film)'' *''Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (video game)'' *''Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban'' *''Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (film)'' *''Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire'' *''Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (film)'' *''Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix'' *''Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (film)'' *''Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (video game)'' *''Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince'' *''Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (film) *Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (video game)'' *''Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows'' *''Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1'' *''Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1 (video game)'' *''Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2 (video game)'' *''Harry Potter: A Pop-Up Book'' *''LEGO Harry Potter: Characters of the Magical World'' *''LEGO Harry Potter: Years 5-7'' *''Pottermore'' *''Harry Potter for Kinect'' See also *Fall of the Ministry of Magic *Andorran Ministry of Magic *Bangladeshi Ministry of Magic *Bulgarian Ministry of Magic *Burkina Faso Ministry of Magic *German Ministry of Magic *Indian Ministry of Magic *Iranian Ministry of Magic *Mongolian Ministry of Magic *New Zealand Ministry of Magic *Norwegian Ministry of Magic *Pakistani Ministry of Magic *Wizards' Council External links *The HP-Lexicon talks about the various departments in The Ministry of Magic *MuggleNet page on The Ministry of Magic Notes and references Category:Battle of Hogwarts participants Category:Death Eater allies Category:Death Eaters enemies Category:Ministry of Magic Category:Order of the Phoenix allies Category:Organisations